A Christmas Wish
by Crystal the Demon-Touched
Summary: Feeling lost on a lonely Christmas Eve, Naruto finds sanctuary in a ramen shop. Who would have guessed that someone else was looking for sanctuary in him. SasuNaru and implied KakaIru


Author: Crystal the Dmeon-Touched  
  
Title: A Christmas Wish  
  
Warnings: Shonen-ai. OOC Sasuke and Naruto. Some angst  
  
Summary: Feeling lost on a lonely Christmas Eve, Naruto finds sanctuary in a ramen shop. Who would have guessed that someone else was looking for sanctuary in _him_. SasuNaru and implied KakaIru  
  
~~~~~~  
  
Naruto looked out the window and sighed. Snowflakes danced in the beautiful light of the sunset. Their endless ballet hypnotized him with their softly floating, twisting, turning, sinking, feather-light motions. The glinting, rainbow-colored Christmas lights from other peoples' houses glinted merrily in the quickly fading light. His hand reached out to delicately place a hand on the windowpane. His fingers flinched away from the freezing cold glass, but he rested his hand once again on the pane. He let his hand drop along the glass, leaving a long, marred stripe on the otherwise unblemished glass.  
  
It's Christmas Eve and I'm alone again, he thought wistfully. He turned back to face the inside of his house. Unlike its usual messiness, the floors were swept clean and everything was in its place. For holidays, he always cleaned up, even if there was no one to spend it with. His thoughts went in a downward spiral, sinking deeper and deeper into self-depression.  
  
"Christmas without anyone to spend it with," he murmured to himself, "is like . . . like ramen without chopsticks. It just doesn't make sense." With a last glance around at his meager surroundings, he threw on his coat and made his way out of the apartment building. Standing outside in the snow, he mournfully let the snowflakes hit him, sending sparkles of ice throughout his unruly blond hair. The tiny icicles stuck to the hair and glinted in the deepening twilight like the halo of a metaphorical angel. His coat was warm, a light blue color with an inside of down. He snuggled deeper into his coat and made his way down the sidewalk towards the normally busy shops of the inner village.  
  
The streets were deserted; the restaurants empty save for a few helpless looking waiters. He thought of who he would like to spend Christmas with, one Haruno Sakura. He imagined her dressed up in a beautiful red dress with a white furry collar and hem, giggling and flirting. Unintentionally, his thoughts turned to another boy who was most likely spending Christmas alone. Then . . . it wasn't as if Sasuke hadn't been invited to spend Christmas with anyone, he just didn't seem to want to.  
  
"Asshole," Naruto mumbled under his breath, stepping into the safety and warmth of his favorite ramen shop. A server instantly came to take his order. His frown deepened. He knew that if anyone else had been in the shop, he would have had to wait several minutes before the servers would make their way to him. He normally had to wait as people who had come in after him were served before him. It was all because of what he was. He sighed and ordered.  
  
A few minutes later, his order arrived. He picked at the food, but he wasn't hungry. Who would be if they were spending Christmas alone? He let himself dream of what his life would be like without the demon-fox. He imagined a lit-up Christmas tree, he'd never been able to afford one, all decorated with ornaments that told tales of memories that lasted through time. A roast ham dinner with all the extras. Christmas caroling outside peoples houses. Presents stacked high under the tree on Christmas day.  
  
Suddenly, he looked up as he heard the tinkling chime, which signaled that someone had entered the shop. His eyes widened as he saw Sasuke shaking snow off his boots and out of his hair. He looked down at his hands and didn't look up, even when he felt Sasuke sit down across from him. He calmly swirled his ramen around as he listened to Sasuke order.  
  
"Spending Christmas alone, dobe?" chuckled Sasuke. Naruto could almost feel the sneer.  
  
"I wouldn't be one to talk, asshole. You're spending it alone too." Naruto looked up in time to see Sasuke flinch at his words. But his composure was instantly regained and his sneer once again set in place.  
  
"But at least I was invited to spend it with my friends. You can't even say you have any of those."  
  
Naruto slid out of his chair, standing up and glaring at Sasuke's calm, cool, collected face angrily. "Well, aren't you a real spreader of Christmas cheer, Grinch," he hissed, turning around and quickly paying the waiter at the front desk before heading out of the tiny shop.  
  
Sasuke watched his back sorrowfully, listening to the faint chime of the bell. Sighing he stood up.  
  
"Why do I even bother?" he asked himself, heading out the door.  
  
Naruto stood facing the wind. In the distance, he could hear the soft caroling of singers. He flinched when he heard the soft crunch of snow behind him.  
  
"Go back inside, pretty boy. Wouldn't want you to mess up your hair." He tried to sneer, but only succeeded in causing tears to spring in his eyes.  
  
"Do you really think I care?" Sasuke's voice sounded like normal, calm and emotionless, but there was an underlying hint of what . . . worry? Scary. Surprising. True.  
  
"What do you care about? Your precious clan? Your spotless reputation?"  
  
"You." Naruto whipped around. The voice had been too close for comfort to his ear. He was shocked to find Sasuke only a couple inches away from him. Sasuke grinned sadly. Gently, he placed a tender, feather-light kiss on Naruto's lips. Naruto instantly flinched away and stared at Sasuke in disbelief.  
  
"I-I, I mean, I . . . um," Naruto stuttered, flushing from something more than just the cold. Sasuke stepped in closer again, cupping Naruto's chin in one hand.  
  
"Shhh. Just, let me have my say. You can yell at me, scream at me, be disgusted in me. Just after I say what I need to say."  
  
Naruto was too dumbstruck to do anything but nod.  
  
"You wouldn't believe how much it has hurt me to insult you all those times. I'm sorry for ever hurting you, but I knew you would be disgusted in me if you knew. I don't know when it started happening, but one day I found myself thinking that I should tell you a joke that I'd heard earlier that day, but I didn't, for fear your head would implode from the shock." Sasuke chuckled dryly.  
  
"And then, I was suddenly obsessed. My brain wouldn't, _couldn't_ stop thinking about you. I survived by withdrawing into the nothingness inside of me, where nothing could hurt or faze me. You know it well, don't you? I always see you withdrawing, when your eyes glass over, and those are the few moment when your actually silent. That's another thing I love about you. Your personality. You loudness." Naruto's mouth fell open in shock.  
  
"Yes, I love you. Nevertheless, I had made a promise that I would never tell you. But when I saw you walking out of the restaurant, I knew you'd be withdrawing with yourself, to hide from the pain." A few tears leaked out of Sasuke's eyes.  
  
"I-I couldn't put you through more pain, especially none created by me. I'm sorry, Naruto. I really am," he was cut off by Naruto's lips on his. The kiss sent shock waves through him, warmth spreading outward from his lips despite the cold. It was a chaste kiss, but enough to shut Sasuke up.  
  
"For what?" Naruto asked innocently, blue eyes sparkling with mirth.  
  
"But I-I-" He was once again shut up by a kiss.  
  
"Will you be quiet for one minute and give _me_ a chance to talk? Jeez, and you say I talk too much. Sasuke, I may be dense, and I may be possessed by some demon-creature-thing, but who am I to turn down a love confession." Naruto blushed prettily. (AN: Yes _prettily_. I will use whatever adverbs I want to describe him! So there.) "Especially when, even if I didn't realize it until now, I have feelings for you too."  
  
"But I-I thought, I mean, I . . ." Naruto placed a gentle finger on Sasuke's lips.  
  
"Shh, you asshole. Wouldn't want you to say something stupid now would we." He laughed as Sasuke playfully swatted him. "Come on, it's freezing out here." He let go of Sasuke and began to trudge back inside the restaurant.  
  
"Naruto?" Sasuke called. Naruto turned around to see that Sasuke hadn't moved, but was staring at him fondly.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Love you."  
  
Naruto's face let up into a bright smile. "Love you too," he sighed, and walked back over to his newfound love. He wrapped his arms around Sasuke's waist and pulled himself in close to the other boy. "And I'm sorry." He whispered, leaking tears onto Sasuke's chest.  
  
"For what?" Questioned Sasuke, startled.  
  
"F-for not realizing that you loved me. I should have noticed." Sasuke brought Naruto's face up to meet his eyes and kissed him. He tasted the sweet, salty taste of his tears, and the unmistakable taste of ramen, but most of all he tasted Naruto; pure, innocent, and with a heart that loves the world, for all it had done to him. Reluctantly, he pulled away.  
  
"It's okay, love. I have you now, and that's more than I could have hoped for." Sasuke gently led Naruto back into the restaurant, where they would discuss many things; memories, friends, enemies, but most of all they would discuss their futures, which suddenly seemed to contain love, for the first time in a long while.  
  
When Kakashi peeked into the ramen shop a little while later, he was shocked at what he found. He had checked at both of his pupils' houses, hoping to find them and invite them to eat a Christmas Eve's dinner with him and Iruka. But when he hadn't found them, he had started searching places where he knew the two were likely to be. He'd never imagined they'd be _together_, in more than one way, obviously. Oh well, he wouldn't bother them. They seemed a little preoccupied anyway.  
  
And besides, it wasn't like he and Iruka wouldn't enjoy the privacy.  
  
~ END ~  
  
Oh man, oh man, oh man. I get WAAAAAY too sentimental around Christmas. Beware the almighty FLUFF-DEMON! *giggles*  
  
Sorry. I had caffeine today. And sugar. And chocolate (which should be a food category all on its own). And more sugar. And I'm getting ready for dinner. Soooooooooooooo, you can't really blame me for the fluff. It was sugar and Christmas-hype induced. Now that I have that written this, maybe these frickin' plot bunnies will LEAVE ME ALONE *gets ambushed by killer rabbit*  
  
*Bruised and bloody* Or maybe not. Please R&R. It is much appreciated. 


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